Paralysis Über Alles

By

Harold James

Updated Sept. 20, 2005 12:01 a.m. ET

The German elections have produced a dramatic break with the consensus that has dominated the country's cozy postwar politics. The result shattered the mold of the Federal Republic, once marked by a rather boring degree of stability. In almost all previous elections, results were easily anticipated, and in all cases there was no doubt about the emergence of a stable government. Yet this time, the character and composition of the government is completely unclear, and will remain so for a long spell of convoluted negotiations over coalitions. It is extremely unlikely that whatever government emerges can last the...